Merdare: Remains of three Serbs killed in Kosovo during 1999 handed over handover of remains, Merdare

Representatives of the Belgrade delegation of the Working Group for Missing Persons received at the Merdare crossing from the Pristina delegation the identified remains of three civilians of Serbian nationality, who were killed in Urosevac, Prizren, and Pristina during 1999.

The remains of Svetislav Djapa from Pristina and Perka Mladenovic from Urosevac were collected on behalf of the families by representatives of the Belgrade delegation, while the remains of Momir Milenkovic were received by members of his family.

The funerals of the remains will be held in Velika Plana, Krusevac, and Belgrade, in accordance with the wishes expressed by the families.

The victims were identified using DNA analysis after representatives of the Commission for Missing Persons collected additional reference DNA samples from relatives of the missing to identify the remains located in the morgue in Pristina.

"This continues the process of identifying victims of Serbian nationality who perished in the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija, which is of particular importance to the families of the missing persons who have been trying for years to find and properly bury the remains of their loved ones," was previously stated by the Commission for Missing Persons of the Government of the Republic of Serbia.

In the official records of the Commission for Missing Persons, an additional 567 individuals are still listed as missing in connection with the conflicts in Kosovo.

Family members who came today to collect the body of Momir Milenkovic, who was kidnapped while checking on his house in Prizren, expressed that they will now at least know where his grave is.

"He was kidnapped on August 29, 1999. He went to check on his house, and there he was kidnapped and taken in an unknown direction. Until now, we knew nothing about him. He was kidnapped along with a Muslim friend. Until today, he was listed as missing, but today we are taking his body," said his wife, Ljiljana Milenkovic.

His daughter, Marica Stojanovic, stated that the body was found in Suva Reka and that after 25 years of agony, he will be buried in Velika Plana.

"He was kidnapped in Prizren, right at the doorstep," said Stojanovic.

"Thank God we found him. At least now we know where his grave is, so we can light candles; until now, everything was uncertain. The body was found in Suva Reka, and we will bury him in Velika Plana," added Milenkovic's wife.